Pearls On A Necklace – SOTA Adventures in W6/CT. Strung along the Angeles Crest Highway (SR 2, Los Angeles County, California), which runs through the San Gabriel Mountains, on the stretch between the Pasadena / Glendale area the south, and the Apple Valley / Victorville area to the north, lie more than 20 SOTA listed summits. Most are 6 to 8 point summits. Proximity to Los Angeles, relatively easy access and beautiful terrain, similar to east slope Washington and Oregon Cascades, make this a “tourist delight” area. On 3 separate days, between October 31, 2014 and November 4, 2014, I activated five (5) of these SOTA summits. This report is #4 of 5.
Circle Mountain lies just north of Lone Pine Canyon Road, near Wrightwood, California, in the San Gabriel Mountains of Southern California. It is 6,900 feet in elevation.
Halloween eve had to produce a treat...lizards, snakes, stange looking animal scat and a nice SOTA Activation... but no tricks! This was the second SOTA Activation of the day for us on October 31, 2014. After leaving Table mountain, and returning through the alpine village of Wrightwood, we proceeded east on the Lone Pine Canyon Road, a couple miles out of town. We parked on the south side of Lone Pine Canyon Road, and started the hike up to Circle Mountain at the gated service road on the north side of Lone Pine.
The hike is about 1.25 miles each way, and approximately 800 steep feet of elevation gain. The vegetation is more scrub brush and the occasional Ponderosa Pine. There was ample evidence of past forest / brush fired in the area.
The summit area is a non-descript plateau, with nice views out to the Mohave Desert to the north, and the San Gabriel Mountains to the south and west.
All contacts were 2M FM, as time was of the essence. We had my nephew's wedding in Clairmiont, CA to get back to. We would like to return and do this Activation in the Spring or very early Summer, to see the vegetation in a different state.
